There Is Too Much Friction in Web3 For Newcomers. Here’s How We Fix it.
The post There Is Too Much Friction in Web3 For Newcomers. Here’s How We Fix it. appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
Picture someone’s first day in crypto. They heard the promises about owning their own money, accessing global markets, and participating in the new economy. They download a wallet, buy some ETH, and find an interesting app. Then it happens. “Please switch to the Base network.” What? They Google frantically, watch a YouTube tutorial, and maybe they figure it out, maybe they don’t. Most just leave, with a study finding 80% of crypto users quit blockchains within 90 days. The greatest innovation of the last decade — the proliferation of powerful blockchains — has inadvertently created Web3’s greatest weakness: a user experience so fragmented and clumsy that it pushes away all but the most determined users. And the most glaring symptom of this failure? The humble “Network Switch”, a feature that has become a symbol of everything holding us back. The MetaMask Years Taught Me Everything When I was at ConsenSys a decade ago, the mission was simple. Onboard the world to Ethereum through MetaMask. Back then, there was one chain available to MetaMask users. Users could just focus on the applications, the possibilities, the revolution we were building. MetaMask succeeded spectacularly as that gateway with millions of users and billions in volume. But watching its evolution revealed our industry’s fundamental problem. The “Networks” dropdown that appeared as other chains launched wasn’t a feature — it was an admission of failure. We’d prioritized technical expansion over user comprehension. The brutal truth is that if users have to think about chains, we’ve already lost. Why Everyone Hates Using Crypto Want to use Ethereum assets on a Solana app today? Buckle up. First, find a bridge (good luck picking the secure, compatible, low-fee option). Connect your wallet. Approve tokens. Pay gas. Wait for confirmations. Switch networks in your wallet. Connect again. Hope nothing…
Filed under: News - @ October 12, 2025 1:21 pm